Questions posted in the
Heart Forum have been answered by doctors from The Cleveland Clinic Foundation.
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Subject: Re: sternectomy Topic Area: Heart DiseasePosted by Larry Magee on June 08, 1999 at 11:04:16I had triple bypass 4 years ago and 20 days post-op I was diagnosis with sternal osteomyelitis. I went through 9 operations over the next 8 months and the last one they took out my sternum.Two years later they had to put a mesh over my chest because of a hernia. My question How many people have had their sternum removed in the years 1994,1995 due to strenal infection? How are they doing I was told by my doctor I should be ok. I have lots of pain and I am not the same person I was before. I have had many Other doctors say they have never saw a patient who had their sternum removed. Am I one of the few who has this done? The other thing the doctors were never able to tell what type of infection I had. One name they they mention was Actinomycosis but never was able to prove it.
Posted by CCF CARDIO MD - DLB on June 08, 1999 at 11:31:46 Dear Larry Sternal osteomyelitis is a rare but known complication of open heart surgery. It is a life-threatening complication. The results are almost never good. It is usually treated with antibiotics and repeat surgeries (sometimes several) to scrape away infected bone. However, to have the entire sternum removed is very rare. I hope this has been useful. I wish you the best of luck. Feel free to write back. Information provided here is for general purposes only. Specific questions should be addressed to your own doctor. If you would like to make an appointment at the Cleveland Clinic Heart Center, please call 1-800-CCF-CARE or inquire online by using the Heart Center website at www.ccf.org/heartcenter. The Heart Center website contains a directory of the cardiology staff that can be used to select the physician best suited to address your cardiac problem.
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